It will be a no contest at AFI polls

Bangalore, April 11, 2013 dhns:

Elections to the top office-bearers’ posts in the Athletics Federation of India, scheduled for the weekend, will be a mere formality with just one candidate each submitting nominations for the respective positions.

As per a directive from the Sports Ministry, AFI had decided to conduct re-election to the posts of president, secretary and treasurer after removing a clause in its constitution that allowed only an existing member of the executive committee to contest for these posts.

When the deadline expired to withdraw the nominations on Tuesday, only the incumbents, Adille Sumariwala, and C K Valson, remain in the fray for the president and secretary’s posts respectively and they are all set to be elected unopposed at the Annual General Body Meeting scheduled for Saturday and Sunday.

In the same way, P K Srivastava, AFI’s technical committee chairman, will be the new treasurer, being the only candidate for the post left vacant by the resignation of Satyanarayana, the secretary of the Karnataka Athletic Association.

The ministry had also refused to recognise his election as he had not taken permission from his employer.

Walter Devaram, the Tamil Nadu Athletic Association chief and currently a vice-president of AFI, will be its senior vice-president.

The post had been left vacant in the last elections. The AGM willalso take stock of the report submitted to the Jharkhand government on AFI's proposal to hold the Asian Athletics Championships in Ranchi after Tamil Nadu government refused to host it. The increasing number of positive dope tests will also come under the scanner.